The leadership of National University of Water Management and Nature Resources Use (NUWMNRU) in Rivne changed last Monday. Instead of the famous professor Vasyl Gurin, who was a rector of this university for seven years, the institution will be headed now by ex-governor, a deputy of Oblast council from the Party of Regions Mykola Soroka.
Opposition forces of Rivne see the connection between the change of leadership and Parliamentary elections in autumn. Press-service of the Ukrainian People's Party (UNP) disseminated the appeal on that score in which accused the Minister of Education Dmytro Tabachnyk of tolerating the party interests.
"The personnel policy of the Party of Regions is a proof of its total bankruptcy and inability to distinguish between own and public interests." - is written in the appeal of UNP. - "The successor of Mr. Hurin, a former head of Rivne oblast administration Mykola Soroka, is known to the public either as a teacher nor as a scholar. However, it's known that Mr. Soroka is going to participate in the Parliamentary elections in autumn from the Party of Regions, and to run as a rector of a big University is more convenient, than as a former official of Kuchma times. The candidate of economic sciences, Professor Mykola Soroka "defended" his PhD thesis only on the last week, what proves once again his precarious position in the world of science."
Newly-appointed rector Mykola Soroka admits himself that his new position is connected to the Parliamentary elections. He affirmed the intention to run for the Verkhovna Rada, that it will only benefit the university.
- The former doesn't interfere with the latter. One needs to have an appropriate status to solve issues of the university development on the state level, - says ex-governor.
The colleague of Mykola Soroka in Oblast council Roman Vasylyshyn has the same opinion. He says, that the results of activities of a new rector will be visible already on the 1st of September. It will be visible through increased state order for NUWMNRU and improved operation of the institution.
Mykola Soroka was born in Zhytomyr oblast; his parents were members of a collective farm. After finishing the Ukrainian Agricultural Academy in 1974, he worked as a chief engineer of the collective farm. Sometime later he became the deputy head and the chief engineer Rokytne rayon association "Agriculture". At the age of 28 he became the deputy head of Rivne oblast association "Agropromremtrans", in a year - the general director, and sometime later - the head of the Board of Rivne Oblast Industrial Association "Oblagrotekhservis", where he worked until 1997. In 1997 Mykola Soroka was appointed on the position of the Head of Rivne Oblast State Administration, which he held until 2005.